Not an Ordinary Night
by Katia11
Summary: "It was just an ordinary night in the Earth Kingdom Tavern. Until a young woman wearing a blue cloak came in."  One Shot, Aang/ Katara.. Rated for drinking references.


So this is gushy fluff and kind of plot less. But, enjoy anyway.

Recommended Listening: Been a Long Day by Rosi Golan, Part of Your World- Reprise from The Little Mermaid. Also, I don't know when this takes place. It's sometime after the series, maybe about three or four years? I also don't know why they are in the Earth Kingdom. Use your imagination.

I don't own Avatar. I do own Olin, however.

Not an Ordinary Night

The light in the seedy earth kingdom tavern was dim and buzzing with the dull hum of the customers. The roof was leaking because of the storm outside…

It was just your ordinary night. Until dark skinned woman wearing a dark blue cloak came through the door drenched from head to foot.

She sat down on a bar stool, and buried her face in her hands.

"Make it strong," she whispered, her voice so shaky that the bar tender barely understood what she had said.

He nodded.

"Here you go," he said handing her a glass of the strongest gin he could find. The men were all watching her every moment with longing plastered in their glassy eyes.

But, the woman didn't seem to mind.

"To freedom," she said and downed her first glass of gin. A few glasses later, she seemed to be totally lost in whatever pain had driven such a beautiful lady to drink this much.

When the woman finally made solid eye contact with Olin he noticed that her eyes were bloodshot and her face was covered with tears.

"To the Avatar," she hiccupped and downed the glass of the gin. She tipped slightly backwards, only preventing a fall by shifting her weight slightly forward again.

The bar tender looked at her warily.

"Miss, I think you've had enough."

She frowned and threw her glass to floor.

"I'll decide when I've had enough."

The bar tender scowled.

"Miss, that's really enough," he assured her again.

She laughed again, playing with something or other that she had hidden in her left hand.

"He asked me to marry him you know."

"Who did?" The bar tender inquired, trying to keep her attention away from asking for another glass of gin.

"The Avatar," she replied hiccupping sadly.

For the first time all night, the tavern fell completely silent.

"Excuse me?" He stuttered.

"Oh, yeah, the man I'm totally in love with asked me to marry him!" She hiccupped again. "Aang asked me to marry him and I said no! What the hell is wrong with me?" Her tears were falling fresh on her face.

"You love him?" He didn't know why he was trying to converse with someone who was this drunk. But, then again alcohol was the quickest way to loosen the tongue.

"Yep, that's right!" She laughed again.

Now he was confused.

"Then why on earth did you say no?"

"Good question! I don't even know. I just froze up! He even got down on one knee. He made me this beautiful bracelet… Oh Spirits, it was everything I ever dreamt it would be. But, my stupid brain started talking to me. All the insecurities I've ever had about our future became clearer then glass. Clearer then his eyes….."

Most people who had not had years of experience would not have been able to understand what the girl had said, but Olin had experience and he was able to make out every word.

"And then what?"

"Then I said no! And just like that he was gone from my life, forever."

"Do you regret this decision?"

"Yes! Didn't I just say I'm in love with him? I regret it every single hour! Every single MINUTE I regret it. I let fear get the best of me. Despite how much I love him, I let it get the best of me. Just like Sokka predicted I would."

"Who is Sokka?"

"Shut up if you want to hear the story," she snapped. "Sokka warned me not to break Aang's heart. I don't know why. He's never been too keen on the two of us…." She hiccupped slightly. "He warned me that if I broke his heart, I might not get another chance. So I was prepared for everything, except the way he was crying."

One of the men in the back chuckled and the young lady turned around and glared at him.

"It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. It was absolutely heartbreaking. He was so nervous. He kept stumbling over his words and stuttering." The woman giggled again. "He took my hand and said all these beautiful things, it was so romantic. And all the while my heart knew what it wanted to say. It was my brain that betrayed me."

"He sounds like a wimp to me," the same man in the back laughed. The girl hiccupped slightly.

"He's perfect."

"Then what are you doing here? You need to catch him!" The bartender encouraged, wiping a few tears from his own eyes. Suddenly the girl looked up from her barstool.

"Do you think he'll still take me back?"

"Without a doubt," the man who had been standing in the back of the room, stepped forward and pulled back the hood he was wearing. Olin just about fainted when he realized that it was the Avatar who was now walking towards the young girl. Her eyes were watering.

"Sokka caught me before I left and told me everything. Besides, I think _that_ might do for an apology."

"Oh, Aang, "the girl said as she slowly stood. She smiled a little bit and hiccupped.

"You are_ so _drunk," he laughed drawing near enough to brush a loose dark hair behind her ear.

"Do you care?"

"Not a bit," he laughed and then kissed her with such intensity that the entire Tavern broke out in cat calls and hooting and hollering. When he pulled away the young girl looked like she had been hit with something very heavy.

"I love you, Aang," she hiccupped and wrapped her arms tightly around the young boy's waist.

"Marry me?"

The whole tavern waited in anticipation, but the lady named Katara smiled.

"Without a doubt," she responded.

He chuckled and kissed her lips lightly. However, Katara fell unconscious into her fiancé's arms.

Olin chuckled.

"She won't remember a thing in the morning."

The Avatar smiled as he lifted the girl into his arms without any trouble.

"I hope not. Because honestly I was hoping for her to be sober when she said yes," he said with a chuckle. But, then he looked at the unconscious woman in his arms with such love in his eyes that it almost made Olin sick. "She deserves to remember it."

"You aren't mad at me?"

Aang smiled.

"You were just doing your job. Not that I condone such actions," but there was a warm sparkle in his eye that only could be described as understanding.

He nodded and with that, the young man pushed his way out into the rain.

For a moment, Olin stood there dumbfounded. Then he raced to the window to see the young airbender climb onto his huge furry beast. He had bended the rain drops into a shield to keep them from getting wet. He smiled at Olin as he said something muffled to the huge furry creature. It rose into the night sky.

When he turned around all of the people were watching him curiously.

"It's not every day that the Avatar comes into my Tavern! Now get back to your drinkin'!"

As he was cleaning off the counter, he realized that the young girl had left something. It was the thing she'd been playing with in her hand. It was a picture of the young Avatar.

"Ah, to be young and be in love," he commented to himself and instead of throwing the paper in the garbage, he tucked it safely under the counter.

After all, in his line of work happiness was not something he often saw. He saw heartbreak, anger, frustration, loss…. But, tonight he had caught a glimpse of something he had thought he had lost long ago, hope.

With a smile he looked out on his drunken customers some of whom were pushing their own chairs in and walking out the door. He had been wrong, this was not an ordinary night.

-x-

P.S. The Earth Kingdom Tavern is the one where Zuko found June. =) (Who I pictured to not be around, obviously.)


End file.
